his cab with his companion. His sharp eyes
glanced over the heavily shaded garden and the little house in its
midst. A little light shone from two windows of the first story. The
men's eyes looked toward them, then the detective and Amster walked
toward a high picket fence which closed the garden on the side nearest
its neighbours. They shook the various pickets without much caution,
for the wind made noise enough to kill any other sound. Amster called to
Muller, he had found a loose picket, and his strong young arms had torn
it out easily. Muller motioned to the other three to join them. A moment
later they were all in the garden, walking carefully toward the house.

The door was closed but there were no bars at the windows of the ground
floor. Amster looked inquiringly at the commissioner and the latter
nodded and said, "All right, go ahead."

The next minute Amster had broken in through one pane of the window and
turned the latch. The inner window was broken already so that it was not
difficult for him to open it without any further noise. He disappeared
into the dark room within. In a few seconds they heard a key turn in the
door and it opened gently. The men entered, all except the policeman,
who remained outside. The blind of his lantern was slightly opened, and
he had his revolver ready in his hand.

Muller had opened his lantern also, and they saw that they were in a
prettily furnished corridor from which the staircase and one door led
out.

The four men tiptoed up the stairway and the commissioner stepped to
the first of the two doors which opened onto the upper corridor. He
turned the key which was in the lock, and opened the door, but they
found themselves in a room as dark as was the corridor. From somewhere,
however, a ray of light fell into the blackness. The official stepped
into the room, pulling Berner in after him. The poor old man was in a
state of trembling excitement when he found himself in the house where
his beloved young lady might already be a corpse. One step more and a
smothered cry broke from his lips. The commissioner had opened the door
of an adjoining room, which was lighted and handsomely furnished. Only
the heavy iron bars across the closed windows showed that the young lady
who sat leaning back wearily in an arm-chair was a prisoner.

She looked up as they entered. The expression of utter despair and deep
weariness which had rested on her pale face changed to a look of terror;
th